Lori

Hi Kristi!
First of all, good for you for realizing you need to quit. Its sooooo much better quitting now after only 4 years then to try to quit 40 years down the road and with a lot more damage and addiction. Do some research on the net, I did when I quit and that helped me a LOT. It opened my eyes to all the bad stuff smoking can and WILL bring. When you quit,make sure you have friends,family,counseling, SOMEONE there to help you and encourage you through this. Keep yourself busy constantly. Put post-it notes all over your house,locker,etc about the reasons you are quitting and reminders of why you are quitting and the good things that will come because of quitting. Take it one day at a time. Treat yourself everday or at least every week. Save out the money you are saving on not buying cigarettes and buy something really nice for yourself (and that can be a lot of money!) About gaining weight, the average person only gains about 5 pounds when quitting! Some people dont gain anything at all. And with you being so young I bet your metabolism is really good and I dont think you will have a problem with that. Its not only the metabolism thing that makes you gain weight however, but the EATING afterwards. I craved sugar and sweet stuff a lot when I quit. The trick to that is FRUIT! Oranges and citris fruit helps so much you wont even beleive it. Any kind of fruit actually. And chew lots of sugar free gum, chew/suck on straws to keep mouth and hands busy, and constantly snack on CRUNCHY veggies. Nummmmy and good for you. Carrots, celery, etc. Drink LOTS of water and juices. Also constantly sipping on the stuff. Stay clear of caffiene as much as you can, at least for the first week or two. Change your habits. If you smoke right after you eat dinner, go for a walk instead. Etc. Start an excersise program. Another way to keep the weight in check and keep busy. You will notice the differences in your breathing almost instantly! So...smoking will let you excersise MORE, therefore take the weight off and be healthier. Smoking is so looked down apon in society right now also, and its only getting worse. Thats not including the physical and emotional problems with smoking. I congratulate you and everyone who is quitting. It will probably be one of the toughest things you will need to do, but it can be done. And many many many people do it everyday. As for quitting cold turkey. That might be the roughest way to go, but its also the quickest. Every person is different and the method will have to be decided by yourself. And keep reminding yourself that if you can get through the FIRST WEEK, then you are over the WORST! The first week, Im not going to lie to you, is pretty hard. But if you take my advise from above it should make it not a big problem. And one week isnt that long of a time considering it will be a lot harder down the road when you need to quit because you have cancer, or something else. Its WELL WORTH IT. One of my favorite quotes " If you think beating cigarettes is hard, try beating cancer". Very powerfull. Keep that in mind on your journey to freedom from the cigarette. Also keep in mind that one half of all smokers DIE as a result from smoking. Good luck!!!!! Please let us know how its going for you if possible! Sorry this was so long, but hoped it helped.
Take Care,
Lori